Leaving this coast, we returned in sight of Sumatra, and went thence to the islands of Nicobar, which we found inhabited by Moors. After we came to anchor, the people came daily on board in their canoes, bringing fowls, cocoas, plantains, and other fruits; and within two days they brought ryals of plate, which they gave us in exchange for calicut cloth. They find these ryals by diving for them in the sea, having been there lost in two Portuguese ships not long before, that were cast away when bound for China. In their language the cocoa-nut is called calambo; the plantain, pison; a hen, jam; a fish, iccan; and a hog, babee. Departing from the Nicobar Islands on the 21st November, we made sail for the island of Ceylon, where we arrived about the 3d December, 1592, and anchored on its south side, in six fathoms water, but lost our anchor, as the ground was foul and rocky. We then ran along the south-west side of the island, and anchored at a place called Punta del Galle, meaning to remain there in waiting for the Bengal fleet of seven or eight ships, the Pegu fleet of two or three, and the ships from Tanaserim, a great bay to the south of Martaban, in the kingdom of Siam, which ships, according to different informations we had got, were expected to come this way within fourteen days, with commodities for the caraks, which usually depart from Cochin, on the homeward voyage, about the middle of January.
The commodities of the ships which come from Bengal are, fine pavilions for beds, wrought quilts, fine cotton cloth, pintados, (painted chintz,) and other fine goods, together with rice; and they usually make this voyage twice a year. The ships from Pegu bring the most precious jewels, as rubies and diamonds; but their principal lading is rice and certain cloths. Those from Tanaserim are chiefly freighted with rice and Nipar wine, which is very strong, and as colourless as rock water, with a somewhat whitish tinge, and very hot in taste, like aqua vitae.[22] We came to anchor at Punta Galle, in foul ground, so that we lay all that night a-drift, having only two anchors left, which were in the hold, and had no stocks. Upon this our men took occasion to insist upon going home, our captain at that time being very sick, and more likely to die than recover. In the morning we set our foresail, meaning to bear up to the northward, standing off and on to keep away from the current, which otherwise would have set us to the south, away from, all known land. When the foresail was set, and we were about to hand our other sails, to accomplish our before-mentioned purpose, our men unanimously declared that they would stay no longer in this country, and insisted upon directing our course for England; and as they would listen to no persuasions, the captain was under the necessity of giving way to their demand, leaving all hope of the great possibility we had of making some rich prizes.
[Footnote 22: Most probably what we now call arrack is here meant.--E.]
Accordingly, on the 8th of December, 1592, we made sail for the Cape of Good Hope, passing the Maldive Islands, and leaving the great island of St Lawrence to starboard, or on our right hand; we passed its southern end in lat. 26° S. In our passage from the island of St Lawrence, or Madagascar, to the main-land of Africa, we found immense quantities of bonitos and albicores, which, are large fishes, and of which our captain, who was now recovered from his sickness, took as many with a hook in two or three hours as would have served forty persons a whole day. This skole of fish continued with us for five or six weeks, in all which time we took every day as many as sufficed our whole company, which was no small refreshment to us.
In February, 1593, we fell in with the eastern coast of Africa, at a place called Baia de Agoa, something more than 100 leagues to the north-east of the Cape of Good Hope; and having contrary winds, we spent a month before we could double the cape. After doubling that cape in March, we steered for the island of St Helena, where we arrived on the 3d of April, and remained there to our great comfort nineteen days, in which time several individuals amongst us caught thirty sizeable congers in a day, with other rock fish, and some bonitos. I, Edmund Barker, went one day on shore, with four or five Peguers and our surgeon, where I found an Englishman in a house near the chapel, one John Segar, of Bury, in Suffolk, who was left there eighteen months before by Abraham Kendal; who put in there with the Royal Merchant, and who left him there to refresh on the island, being like to perish on shipboard. At our coming he was fresh in colour, and seemed in perfect health of body; but he was crazed in mind, and half out of his wits, as appeared afterwards. Whether it was that he was terrified at our arrival, not knowing at first whether we were friends or foes, or if sudden joy so affected him on finding again his countrymen and old comrades, I know not, but he became quite light headed, and during eight days and nights he could not get any natural rest, so that he died for lack of sleep. At this place two of our men recovered their health in a short time, one of whom was diseased with the scurvy, and the other had been nine months sick of the flux. We found abundance of green figs, fine oranges and lemons, plenty of goats and hogs, and numbers of partridges, pintados, and other wild fowls. Having now supplied the ship with fresh water, and having some store of fish, our discontented mariners insisted upon resuming the voyage home; and our captain, being inclined to go for Fernambuco, in Brasil, agreed to their request. We departed therefore from St Helena about the 12th April, 1593, directing our course for the Brasils; and next day, on calling the sailors to finish a foresail they had then in hand, some of them declared they would not put their hands to any thing, unless the ship's course was directed for England; so that he was obliged to follow their humour, henceforwards directing our course towards our own country, which we continued to do till we came to lat. 8° N. between the equator and which latitude we spent about six weeks, with perpetual calms or contrary winds from the north, sometimes north-east and north-west; owing to which loss of time, and our small store of provisions, we were very doubtful of being able to keep our course. At this time some of our men became very mutinous, threatening to break up other people's chests, to the entire consumption of our provisions and ourselves; for every man had now his share of provisions in his own custody, that they might know what they had to trust to, and husband that the more thriftily.
Anxious to prevent the occurrence of absolute famine, and being informed by one of the ship's company who had been at the island of Trinidada, in a voyage with Mr Chudlei, and that we might be sure of having provisions there, our captain directed the course for that island; but not knowing the currents, we overshot it in the night, getting into the gulf of Paria, in which we were for eight days, unable to get out again, as the current constantly set in, and our ship was often in three fathoms water. At length the current put us over to the western side of the gully under the main-land, so that by keeping close in shore, and having the wind off the land in the night, we got out to the northward. Being now clear, we came in four or five days to the isle of Mona, where we anchored and remained about eighteen days, during which time the Indians of Mona gave us some victuals. In the mean time there arrived a French ship of Caen, in Normandy, of which one Monsieur de Barbaterre was captain, from whom we bought two butts of wine, with some bread, and other provisions. We then watered and repaired our ship, stopping a great leak that sprung upon us while beating out of the gulf of Paria; and being thus in readiness for sea, we determined upon going to the island of Newfoundland: but, before we could put this in execution, there arose a great storm from the north, which drove us from our anchor, and forced us to the southwards of San Domingo. We were that night in great danger of shipwreck upon an island called Savona, which is environed with flats for four or five miles all round; yet it pleased God to enable us to clear them, when we directed our course westwards, along the southern shore of St Domingo, and having doubled Cape Tiberoon, we passed through the old channel between St Domingo and Cuba, shaping our course for Cape Florida.
In this part of our course we again met with the Caen ship, which could now spare us no more victuals; but having some hides, which he had taken in traffic among the islands, we were glad to procure them, and gave him for them to his contentment. After this we passed Cape Florida, and clearing the Bahama channel, we directed our course for Newfoundland. Running to the lat. of 36° N. and as far east as the isle of Bermuda, we found the winds, on the 17th September, very variable, contrary to expectation and all men's writings, so that we lay there a day or two with a north wind, which continually increased, till it blew a storm, which continued twenty-four hours with such violence that it carried away our sails, though furled, and occasioned the ship to take in much water, so that we had six feet water in our hold. Having freed our ship by baling, the wind shifted to the north-west, and somewhat dulled; but presently after the storm renewed with such violence, and our ship laboured so hard, that we lost our foremast, and our ship became as full of water as before.
When the storm ceased, the wind remained as much contrary as ever, on which we consulted together how we might best save our lives. Our victuals were now utterly spent; and as we had subsisted for the last six or seven days entirely on hides, we thought it best to bear away back again for Dominica and the adjoining islands, as we might there have some relief. Upon this we turned back for these islands; but before we could get there the wind scanted upon us, so that we were in the utmost extremity for want of water and provisions; wherefore we were forced to bear away to the westwards, to the islands called Las Nueblas, or the Cloudy Islands, towards the isle of San Juan de Porto Rico. At these islands we found land-crabs and fresh water, and sea-tortoises, or turtle, which come mostly on land about full noon. Having refreshed ourselves there for seventeen or eighteen days, and having supplied our ship with fresh water and some provision of turtle, we resolved to return again for Mona, upon which determination five of our men left us, remaining on the isles of Nueblas, in spite of every thing we could say to the contrary. These men came afterwards home in an English ship.
Departing from the Nueblas, we arrived again at Mona about the 20th December, 1593, and came to anchor there towards two or three in the morning. The captain and I, with a few others, went on shore to the dwelling of an old Indian and his three sons, thinking to procure some food, our victuals being all expended, so that we could not possibly proceed without a supply. We spent two or three days on shore, seeking provisions to carry on board for the relief of our people; and on going to the shore, for the purpose of returning with these to the ship, the wind being somewhat northerly and the sea rough, our people could not come near the shore with the boat, which was small and feeble, and unable to row in a rough sea. We remained therefore till the next morning, in hopes there might then be less wind and smoother sea. But about twelve o'clock that night our ship drove away to sea, having only five men and a boy, our carpenter having secretly cut the cable, leaving nineteen of us on shore, to our great distress, having no boat or any thing else.
In this miserable situation we reposed our trust in God, who had many times before succoured us in our greatest extremity, and contenting ourselves with our poor estate, sought for the means of preserving our lives. As one place was unable to sustain us, we divided ourselves into several companies, six of us remaining with our captain. The greatest relief that we could find during twenty-nine days was the stalks of purselin, boiled in water, with now and then a pompion, or gourd, which we found in the garden of the old Indian, who, on this our second arrival, fled with his three sons, and kept himself continually aloft on the mountains. At the end of these twenty-nine days we espied a French ship, which we afterwards learnt was the Louisa, of Dieppe, commanded by a Monsieur Felix. As a signal to this ship we made a fire, at sight of which he took in his top-sails, and bore up for the land, shewing his French colours. Then coming to anchor at the Western end of the island, we came down with all speed towards him; and the old Indian, with his three sons, now joined us, and accompanied us towards the ship. This night Captain Lancaster went on board the ship, where he received good entertainment; and next morning they fetched other eleven of us on board, and used us all very courteously.